Red Light District, which bills itself as a 'romantic superstore,' has cleared the regulatory hurdles that threatened to shut it down. / Staff file photo by Jeremy Cox

Written by

Staff Writer

Like it or not — put Mayor Jim Ireton and his administration firmly in the “not” category — the establishment that bills itself as a “romantic superstore” has cleared the regulatory hurdles that threatened to shut it down.

The adult-themed retail chain opened on North Salisbury Boulevard in August and was almost immediately hit with city code violations, racking up $750 in fines.

City officials wouldn’t approve the “Red Light District” sign unless the store qualified as adult by having 20 percent or more of its floor space devoted to adult items. But if it did qualify, the store couldn’t be where it is because it’s within 1,000 feet of homes and a house of worship.

Red Light eventually brought itself into compliance by simply hanging the “adult” items on a wall, Ireton said. The store decided to pay fines to retain the sign instead of changing it.

“Maneuvering around the law is what this company has done up and down the East Coast,” he said in a statement. “Our city tried with all we had to make them go. Yet the Red Light owners had the money to fight in court, the money to get them back into compliance, and the lawyers who knew the way around our laws.”